The Fast Track
by Rose Stetson
Summary: COMPLETED! Sam and Jack are married, and find themselves racing against the clock to save Samantha's life.
1. What's Going On?

**The Fast Track**

By Rose Stetson

Story Format: It's an AU story, set after "The Tok'ra" in Season 2, and it's a Sam and Jack story.

Spoilers: "Brief Candle"- Season 1, "There But for the Grace of God"- Season 1, "The Tok'ra"- Season 2

Disclaimer: I do NOT own these characters, just the story, although Jack O'Neill is a delicious character (Yummy!) and who wouldn't love to be Samantha Carter (she's like the coolest woman EVER!).

**It's updated! There were a couple of mistakes that I had noticed when I saw it online that I hadn't noticed before! SORRY! Oh, and thanks for all the beautiful comments! If you have any criticism for it, (positive or negative) PLEASE review! I also added a few more sections to it!**

Samantha O'Neill awoke beside her husband. Her heart fluttered in amazement! This was her husband, Colonel Jack O'Neill. She ran her fingers through his short, graying hair.

He didn't move, still slumbering peacefully. It amazed her how different he was away from the SGC. For one, he was a bit more romantic, and she had also noticed that he slept a lot more peacefully than when they were on missions together.

Her heart ached for a brief moment. Unfortunately, their missions together were less frequent than before because she had finally retired from the Air Force and returned to the SGC as the head of the scientific research department. Of course, that had also allowed her to have a significant relationship with Jack. To her, the sacrifice was worth it. Of course, it was an added bonus that she was going to be able to go through the gate every once in a while for research. She was also going to be around her friends, Daniel and Teal'c almost as often as she had been as a member of SG-1.

Jack groaned and stirred, placing his arm around her. She snuggled in closer, overwhelmed with a feeling of love.

Just as she was getting settled, her stomach began turning, making her feel an intense feeling of nausea. She left Jack's side quickly, running to the bathroom just in time to empty the contents of her stomach into the toilet.

She assumed that the nausea would pass as quickly as it had come upon her, but she found herself retching several more times until she was dry heaving.

"Samantha, are you all right?"

Jack walked into the bathroom as she had another episode of dry heaving. She smiled at him weakly afterwards. "I think I have the stomach flu."

SG-1

Jack walked into Daniel Jackson's office. The archaeologist/anthropologist/linguist was sitting at his cluttered desk, studying an ancient dialect and writing copious amounts of notes.

"Hey, Danny boy!"

Daniel squinted up at Jack, his glasses nearly falling off his face. He pushed them back up to their proper place. "Hi, Jack."

Jack chuckled, "Daniel, when are you going to consider contacts?"

"When the cow jumps over the moon. What do you need, Jack?"

"The scheduled mission is postponed. Sam was scheduled to come with us, but she's got the flu, and the General doesn't want to take that active germ to the Argosians."

"Is she okay?"

"Oh, yeah, she'll be fine. She's just miserable right now."

Teal'c entered and Jack went to give him a high-five. The Jaffa grabbed the Colonel's wrist and pinned his arm behind his back.

"Teal'c, it was just a high-five!"

"You were preparing to strike me, O'Neill."

"No, I wasn't. Teal'c let me go!"

Teal'c released his grasp and Jack clutched his throbbing wrist. "Man, Teal'c! That hurt! Danny, help me demonstrate a high-five so that doesn't happen again."

They proceeded to do so, and Jack turned to his not-so-young pupil. "Teal'c it's a way that we have of greeting and congratulating people here on earth."

"I was unaware of such a custom, O'Neill."

Jack nodded, still rubbing his sore wrist.

"You had sent for me, O'Neill."

"Yeah, Teal'c, the mission has been postponed until we are adequately aware of how many of us on the base have the flu like Sam."

Teal'c nodded at Daniel's explanation.

"We're just going to have to keep one ear to the ground to find out about when we leave. So, SG-1 is staying on-base."

They nodded, and Jack left to find General Hammond who had called for a meeting with him.

SG-1

The next morning, Samantha awoke to the same nauseating feeling. She had noticed other signs of discomfort: her breasts hurt and she was craving some strange combinations of food.

Yesterday afternoon, her appetite had picked up. She wandered downstairs and looked through the cupboards and decided to eat pickles and Oreos.

Jack came home to see the family health nut sitting down to eat her meal.

"So, when the cat's away, the mouse will play." He joked. "No wonder you're not feeling well."

She looked up at him. "And you're talking?"

"What do you mean? You're the one eating Oreos and pickles."

"Hey, Jack," she said, taking a bite of her Oreo. "Do we have any salami or crackers?"

He looked at her with wonder and amazement. "I guess this means you're feeling better."

She nodded, "Quite a bit, actually. Besides, this just sounded good."

Just then, she felt light-headed and passed out. Jack caught her quickly.

Jack was coming into their room with an offering of saltine crackers. "Feeling any better?"

She shook her head, miserably. He sat beside her on the bed. "I called Dr. Fraser. You're coming to work with me today."

"Jack, it's probably just the thirty-six hour bug. By tomorrow, I'll be fine. Besides, I don't want to impede anyone else's mission."

She finally won with that argument.

"But, if I see you dining on the same fare as you were last night, I'm taking you in to get your head checked."

She smiled. "I'm not going to kiss you, but have a good day at work."

"My day always goes better when you kiss me," he said.

"Not when I have the flu."

SG-1

The next morning went similarly, and Jack finally put his foot down.

"Samantha Elizabeth Carter O'Neill, you are coming, even if I have to carry you myself."

She nodded, meekly. He tried to help her get dressed, but she quickly shooed him away while she showered and dressed. As she put on her dress slacks, she had a hard time fastening the button. 'That's odd,' she thought. She decided to wear some looser-fitting pants. 'I guess I haven't been as physically active in the last few weeks as I'm used to,' she thought.

Twenty minutes later, she appeared in the doorway of the kitchen. Jack saw her and he couldn't resist but place his arms around her hips as she threw her arms around his neck. Suddenly, he felt her body go limp in his arms. He was now really worried about her. Was it possible that they had brought back an alien flu bug back through the gate? Had he given it to her?

SG-1

Jack, Daniel and Teal'c waited anxiously outside the doors of the infirmary for Dr. Fraser to finish Samantha's examination. Just then, Janet came out. "Colonel O'Neill, may I have a word with you?"

He nodded and followed her into a more private area of the infirmary.

"What is it, Doc?"

She took a deep breath. "Jack, she's pregnant."

It took a while for this information to register in his mind, but when it did, a grin slowly dominated his features. Then, he caught a glance of Janet's worried face.

"What's wrong?"

"Jack, the blood sample we took from her also revealed some of the nanosites that we found in your blood from your stay on Argos."

Jack was too stunned to reply.

"Colonel, I'm not an obstetrician, but I can tell you that Samantha's pregnancy is progressing at a faster rate than any other pregnancy on earth. She's three months pregnant, and she claims to have had her period last month. Jack, these symptoms are incredibly intense. I think it's because her body's trying to keep up with the fetus's intense growth."

"And this is because of the nanosites?"

Janet drew another deep breath. "I believe so, but for all I know, it could be a side-effect of the naquadah in her blood. On the other hand, I think it's more likely that the naquadah is affecting the fetus's growth rate by slowing it down, and making it a little safer for Samantha."

Jack was silent for a moment. "So, this is dangerous for Samantha's health?"

Janet nodded tentatively. "I believe so. The problem that this intense growth presents with Sam that it didn't with the Argosians is that Sam's growth rate is considerably slower than that of the fetus. I think if it were any faster, it would kill her."

"If we got a blood sample from the Argosians, would it be easier?"

Janet shrugged. "For all we know, they don't have anymore of the nanosites. You did have one-hundred times the amount of the devices as they did. It would take your system a lot longer to process those than it would for them."

Jack pounded his fist on the wall. "Colonel, this isn't your fault."

"Of course it's my fault!" he spat. "if I hadn't had that indiscretion with Kynthia, I wouldn't have gotten that stupid nanosite, and Samantha wouldn't be in there right now."

"And you wouldn't have helped to free the Argosians from that particular curse."

General Hammond walked through the doors to the infirmary and found Jack and Janet conversing quietly in the corner.

"Doctor, I heard that Dr. O'Neill is here. What's wrong?"

"She has some of the Argosian nanosites in her bloodstream."

"Jack, has she been experiencing some of the same symptoms that you had on Argos?"

He shook his head. "No. The difference, General, is that it's not her body that's aging."

George Hammond was quite used to unbelievable explanations for the various phenomena that permeated the SGC's operation, but this was too unbelievable even for him.

"Then just whose body is aging, Colonel?"

Janet looked at Jack and then at the General. "Sir, Dr. O'Neill is pregnant."

SG-1

Samantha's head was swimming with the revelation that she was pregnant. Was it really true that she had gone through in three days what most pregnant women went through in three months? For that matter, was it really true that she was pregnant? And how on earth had those blasted nanosites entered her bloodstream? Had Jack never fully been cleansed from the devices?

Oh, gosh! Jack! How was he handling this? Heck, her mind was short-circuiting with this information, and she was the scientist.

She placed her left hand on her stomach. She smiled at the sight of her wedding ring. She may be scared to death, but she and Jack would get through it together. Famous last words, her subconscious spat.

She moved her hand around her abdomen. It was amazing to think that nestled in her womb was a new human life: her baby.

Her heart began to pound. Oh man, she was scared to death! What was going to happen? If Janet was right, she would be a mother in about a week. Wow! She was not ready for motherhood!

Another fear tugged at her heart. How would the naquadah in her blood affect her baby's health? For that matter, how would it affect her health? These were questions that she had planned on asking Selmac later, when she and Jack consciously considered having a child.

Jack walked toward her, and she could hardly breathe. Man, oh man, was he good-looking. He was hurrying toward her, a worried look frozen in his features.

"Jack!"

He stood next to her bed, and as she reached for his hand, he withheld it.

"Jack, what's wrong?"

"We're going to Argos. We'll be back in a few hours."

"Jack," she pleaded, looking into his eyes and reaching once more for his hand. "Stay with me, please."

His heart was touched. He could feel himself regressing into an earlier place and time when she had asked the same thing of him. She had been host to the Tok'ra, Jolinar. It had been the only other time that she had begged anything from him, and he had left her alone then.

He gave her his hand. "All right, I'll see if I can get one of the other SG teams to cover it."

Suddenly, the klaxons went off. "Off-world activation!"

Jack's hand dropped Sam's and he rushed out to the gate room. Samantha wiped away a couple of tears. Stupid hormones, she thought.

TBC


	2. Nanosites

**_Thanks for all of the great feedback! It's a great morale booster! Keep the comments coming! It shouldn't take long before the whole story is on the net!_**

Jack reached the gate room just in time to see Jacob/Selmac pass through the gate. He and General Hammond went through the blast doors to greet their old friend.

"George! Jack! What's going on?"

"Hi Jacob, Samantha will be glad to see you."

Jacob looked at his son-in-law. "Jack, what's the emergency?"

Dr. Fraser walked through the blast doors just then. "General Carter, I need to talk to Selmac about a medical inquiry I have that could potentially save Samantha's life."

Jacob bowed his head and Selmac took over consciousness. "Dr. Fraser, we'll do anything we can do to help you."

Janet nodded, "If you will follow me, I can explain the situation to you on the way."

They quickly walked through the corridors of the SGC. "Samantha is pregnant, but the fetus is developing in one day the way a human fetus normally develops in one month. We believe it may have something to do with the experiment that the goa'uld, Pelops, started on the planet, Argos."

"The nanotechnology that he used to replicate the aging process among humans in his quest to find a hok'tar."

"Yeah. Apparently, it wasn't entirely gone from my blood stream." Jack added, knowing he could not withhold from his father-in-law for long.

"Well, let me take a look at the blood samples."

Janet complied, taking Selmac to the area of the infirmary that served as Janet's office. "Here you go."

Selmac took a look and then turned to Dr. Fraser. "According to our reports, you stopped the nanosites by transmitting a frequency across the area. Have you tried that?"

The General turned to Janet. "I'll get right on it, Sir."

They walked in to see Sam. She looked up and saw Jacob/Selmac. Tears filled her eyes. "Dad!"

Selmac lowered his head and Jacob returned. "Hey, Sam! Congrats! And I mean it!"

She smiled, "Thanks."

Janet had gone for some audio equipment and Jack turned to Samantha. "Do you know where we can find the frequencies that the nanosites responded to?"

She thought for a moment. "I have a file on my computer that basically has all the information we learned from that mission. I also have a manilla folder of notes, in the bottom right-hand drawer of my desk at the top under 'Argos.'"

Daniel, who had joined the group, turned to Teal'c. "You want to come with me?"

Teal'c only gave a single nod of his head, signalling his agreement to the arrangement.

The General turned to Jack. "Keep me posted on the situation. I'm going to monitor it from the gate room. Then, we'll send SG-1 through on their mission."

Jack followed the General for a little while. "Um, General Hammond, sir."

He turned, "What, Jack?"

"Is there any way that one of the other SG teams can take the mission to Argos?"

George nodded. "I should have reassigned SG-1 when I found out Sam was in the infirmary."

The older man placed one hand on his friend's shoulder. "Jack, don't make the same mistake."

Jack didn't need or want him to expound and gave him a grateful look when he didn't. "I don't plan to."

SG-1

While Jack was talking to the General, Samantha was gathering up the courage to ask her father about her worries. "Uh, Dad, do you think the naquadah in my blood will have an adverse affect on my pregnancy?"

Selmac surfaced. "I believe the naquadah in your blood is saving your life."

"What?"

"Samantha, your child's growth is so much faster than yours that even now, it is dangerous to your health. If it were not for the naquadah, I believe the nanosites would have the same aging effect on this life as it had on the Argosians: one day equals one year."

Jack returned just then. "Another SG-team is going to Argos."

Sam's smile held her gratitude, and she took his hand. "Thank you."

Janet appeared with some audio equipment. Seconds later, Daniel and Teal'c arrived with the reports.

"Sam," Janet said, after they had looked over the reports. "We don't know how this is going to affect you or the fetus. I just want to make sure you understand that."

She nodded, and Janet turned to Jack. "Sir, you should probably leave. We don't know how this will affect the nanosites within you."

"Doc, I'm staying here."

Sam reached for his arm and motioned for him to sit next to her. "Could we have a few moments?"

Quickly, the group exited, leaving Sam and Jack alone.

"Samantha, I'm not-"

She placed a finger on his lips. "Jack, you heard Dr. Fraser. She can't guarantee that either the baby or I will survive this experiment, let alone the both of us."

He looked away. "Sam, I should be the one paying for that mistake. Not you or the baby."

Then, under his breath, he added. "Not like Charlie and Sarah."

"Jack, look at me." She gently guided his chin to face her direction. "We all make mistakes. Heck, I've made a lot of mistakes when your life was on the line. I believe you've paid your dues, but I also know that if we accidentally reactivate the nanosites in your body, we'll have to worry about you alongside me and the baby."

Samantha paused, choking back tears. "And if one of us does die, the other of us will need you to be there."

Jack's eyes showed the pain that he had tried to hide all day. "If something happens to either one of you, I don't think I could live with myself."

She pulled his body into as tight an embrace as she could manage with the bars of the hospital cot in the way.

"If I do die, I won't have any regrets except one," she added, thoughtfully.

His head jerked up. "What would that be?"

Her eyes softened, welling up with tears. "Dang hormones!"

He wiped her eyes. "What would you regret?"

"I'll regret not having disregarded those stupid regulations earlier!"

He laughed. "I love you."

"I love you, too." She said as their lips met in a warm kiss.

TBC


	3. Together

Jacob/Selmac sat next to Sam, holding her hand. Janet was standing near the frequency emitter. She nodded to the medical technician who then turned the emitter on.

Samantha had one hand on her stomach. For the first few minutes, nothing felt different from the state of rapid growth that she had been experiencing before. Suddenly, she felt movement that she hadn't before. Her eyes widened.

"Janet! I think . . ."

Samantha passed out, the strain growing too intense, and Janet motioned urgently for the technician to turn off the machine.

"Turn off the frequency!"

The young technician was startled, and changed the frequency instead of turning the machine off. Samantha's heart rate increased.

"I said turn it off!"

Finally, the technician managed to follow the urgent command. Janet began checking Samantha's vital signs. Her eyes widened in horror just as Samantha's had done.

Jacob looked at Janet. "What's wrong?"

Janet swallowed. "We've increased the growth rate of the fetus."

Jacob gasped. "By how much?"

Janet turned to him, her mind still struggling to contemplate the ramifications of this action. "Sir, we've tripled it."

Jacob turned to the young technician who stood, gaping at the latest revelation. "Bring Colonel O'Neill in here, now! And bring the General."

SG-1

Jack, Daniel and Teal'c were in Daniel's office, anxiously awaiting any news. Jack was pacing around the room, his hands behind his back, just like he had when Charlie had died. Though Jack wasn't sure if he really believed in a god, he was willing to do anything to help Sam.

God, he silently prayed. If you're there, you know how much I need your help. I've finally found a woman who understands me, and I don't want to- no, I can't- lose her. God, do anything you want to me, but please, leave her and our baby alone!

"Colonel, Dr. Fraser needs you."

Jack's heart nearly stopped. He hurried over to the young technician. "What's going on?"

The technician swallowed, "Sir, I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to explain it even if I knew what was going on. I really don't understand any of this."

Jack hurried out of the room.

"None of us do," snapped Daniel, as he followed his friend into the corridor to hear the news of Samantha's condition.

As Jack raced into the infirmary, he saw Janet and her team putting Samantha on an IV. "Dr. Fraser, what's going on?"

Janet looked up and walked over. "Colonel, I'm sorry. We ended up tripling the already intense growth of the fetus. Right now, we're doing everything we can artificially to help Sam succeed."

Hammond walked in. "Dr. Fraser, what is it?"

"Sir, we've made the situation worse."

The General swore loudly. "Jacob, is there anything that the Tok'ra can do?"

He shook his head, regretfully.

"General Hammond, sir, can we call the Asguard? They might be able to help us."

He nodded to Janet. "I'll have SG-5 suited, briefed and ready to go in thirty minutes."

"And the mission to Argos?"

"SG-11 left twenty minutes ago, Colonel. They're scheduled for a return at 2300 hours tonight."

"Ugh, what happened?" Sam asked, groggily.

"Carter, you . . ."

She put up one finger to silence her husband. "That's O'Neill to you, Sir."

He smiled, "Sorry. Old habits die hard."

Janet, who had been examining Samantha's vital signs once more, started writing something on a chart. "Sam, when we emitted that frequency, we ended up increasing the growth rate of the fetus."

The color drained from her face. "By how much?"

"Sam, we tripled it."

Her eyes widened in terror. Already, she felt the effects of the increased growth rate, She could feel her heart beating intensely as it tried to keep up with the mind-boggling pace of her baby's growth.

"Samantha needs a little bit of space." Selmac concluded, a note of authority breaking the awkward silence.

Janet nodded in agreement with the Tok'ra's assessment. "I'll be back in about an hour to do another sonogram. In the mean time, I'll try to find you a good obstetrician."

Sam gave her a grateful smile as she continued to shoo people from the room.

Jack began to leave alongside his friends, only hesitating slightly to glance back at his beautiful bride.

"Jack!"

He turned around again, "Yeah?"

"Will you stay with me?"

Jack looked over at Janet who smiled her approval. "Hey, Dr. Fraser, do you think I can take Sam to the surface?"

Sam gasped. Had she accidentally whispered that desire in his presence? She wanted to taste the fresh air of the mountain so badly that it was worse than any other craving she had ever had.

Janet looked at Samantha hesitantly. She saw the yearning in her eyes, and finally complied. "But only for a few moments."

They unhooked her from her IV and Jack put his strong arms around her, about to carry her up, but she stopped him. "Can I get dressed first?"

Jack shook his head, half-amused at her self-consciousness.

"Uh, Sam, you might want me to get you some BDUs that are bigger than you're used to." Janet said, smiling.

They all looked at Sam's rapidly expanding abdomen, and Sam blushed. "You're probably right," she conceded.

As Janet left to find the BDUs, Sam sat up and turned to face Jack, her legs dangling off the side of the bed. She grabbed Jack's arm. "Help me up."

As he did so, she nearly fell back onto the bed. He tried to catch her, but she steadied herself in time.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Jack asked, questioning the feasibility of the feat.

"Jack, I'm a little unsteady because of the pregnancy. It's normal."

She hoped she sounded sure, but in reality, she was as ignorant in such "womanly things" as he was, and probably even more. She laughed inwardly. Almost every time SG-1 encountered a pregnant woman in labor, or a small child, the men in the group turned to her. Often times, she just shrugged and said, "Don't look at me." It was at those times that Daniel would come out of hiding and share his knowledge with the group. She chuckled, who'd have thought that Daniel was a midwife?

Suddenly, she placed a hand on her stomach.

"Sam, is anything wrong?"

She shook her head, a glazed look on her face. She placed his hand on her stomach. His eyes widened in amazement. "Jack, that's our baby."

His mind wandered back in time to another time that a woman had said that to him. Sarah had been so excited every time she felt Charlie move within her. Unfortunately, that chapter of his life had ended tragically.

"Jack?" Sam asked, bringing his thoughts to the present.

"Yeah?"

She smiled, sadly. "You're thinking about Sarah and Charlie, aren't you?"

He contemplated denying this, but he couldn't bring himself to do so. "Yeah, how could you tell?"

"Nothing else brings that much pain to your eyes."

He nodded, and looked deeply into her sparkling blue eyes. "Sam, do you have any idea how scared I am to lose you? I mean, it's taken us so long to be together that I would feel cheated out of a life with you."

She pulled him close to her and rested her head on his shoulder. "Jack, I'm scared to death about the whole thing."

She looked up into his eyes. " But I can do this if you're here with me."

"Who would have thought that two people who routinely save the world are most frightened of having a baby?"

She laughed; the tears that had fallen earlier were glistening in the glow of the light shining down on them from the fluorescent light bulbs. She was so beautiful.

He placed a finger under her chin and brought her lips up to his. "I'm not going to make the same mistake with you."

TBC


	4. Something Else

Thor, the Supreme Commander of the Asguard fleet, teleported himself and a dazed SG-5 into the SGC's Briefing Room. "General Hammond, how may I be of service to you?"

"Well, Thor, my friend, we need your help. Samantha O'Neill is being held in the infirmary. I believe Dr. Fraser could explain the situation more completely than I, so I'll dismiss SG-5, and we'll head over."

Thor disappeared and General Hammond turned to SG-5. "Good work. We'll have debriefing in an hour."

The team saluted and the General returned the salute, leaving to go to the infirmary.

SG-1

Sam put on her new BDUs, rolling up the sleeves a little bit. Jack chuckled when he looked at her baggy pants and long shirt.

"What are you laughing at?" she demanded.

"Nothing," he said, ducking as she delivered a disbelieving blow.

Suddenly, a flash of light appeared and Thor emerged. "Samantha, General Hammond alluded to a medical situation regarding you. Will you enlighten me?"

Samantha blushed. "Well, Thor, there are nanosites in my body, speeding up the growth of my baby."

She creased the material just above her pregnant bulge to accentuate the intense growth. Jack's eyes widened; her body was stretching before his very eyes. He looked over at Thor who sat in his commander's chair, trying to sort out the situation.

Within a matter of minutes, her stomach was pressing against the fabric, stretching it tightly across her body.

"Jack, I'm going to change back into the gown."

He smiled, "Do you need my help?"

Sam began to shake her head, but then she changed her mind. "Yeah, please."

They excused themselves from Thor, who was now joined by Daniel Jackson, Teal'c, Janet Fraser and George Hammond.

As they struggled to free her from the ever-tightening BDUs, Sam turned to Jack. "I'm sorry about not going up to the surface."

Jack shook his head. "Don't you dare feel guilty about that. I just thought we might be able to sneak some time away from everyone else to just be Jack and Samantha O'Neill."

She snuggled up to him. "Hmmm, I like the sound of that."

Jack smiled, placing his arms across her chest and reaching her softly rounded belly. "Yeah, but Junior's in a little too much of a hurry for something like that."

"What are you hoping for?" she asked, relishing the close proximity that they were enjoying.

His confusion at the abrupt change in conversation was evident in his eyes as he looked down into her upward-looking eyes. "What?"

"Do you want a boy or a girl?"

Jack thought for a few moments, resting his chin on her shoulder. "Probably a girl. Yep, definitely a girl who would grow up to become smart, beautiful and compassionate like her mother."

Tears gathered in her eyes. "Thanks, Jack."

Jack coughed. "I'm supposed to be tying your hospital gown in the back, not making myself sick with romance."

They laughed.

Samantha began swaying with dizziness as Jack tied the last lace of the gown. "Sam," he commanded, "Don't you dare go down on me."

"Oh gosh, Jack." She said, trying to fight off the inevitable fainting spell, "I'm so tired."

He half-guided, half-carried her back to her cot in the infirmary; by now, she looked to be approximately six months pregnant. Thor looked at her expanding shape in amazement. "I shall return," he said as he vanished.

Janet wasted no time in examining Samantha immediately. "From what I can tell, she just fell asleep. There's nothing strange about it right now, but I am probably mistaken."

She took a blood sample. "This will tell me what I need to know."

Jack nodded, and sat next to Samantha's bed. It was time for him to catch some shut-eye too.

"Colonel O'Neill!"

Janet's face came into view. Her blurry form was quickly clarified after he blinked a few times. I'm getting old, he thought.

"What is it, Doc?"

Her pale face made his heart sink. "Colonel, I think we have another problem."

TBC

_How did you like it? Please R&R. I'll try to post something new as soon as I can._


	5. What To Do?

_Thanks for all your marvelous comments! If you feel lost, let me know so that I can fix it! Please!_

Jack stared at the computer in disbelief.

"This is an image of Samantha's blood. Before, the nanosites only affected the fetus. I'm beginning to believe that the nanosites were able to affect the growth rate of the fetus because it did not have its own immune system. When we turned the frequency on, the nanosites began affecting Samantha."

Jack had one arm across his chest with his other arm propped up on his hand, the fingers of that hand, stroking his chin in thought. "So what does that tell us?"

"Colonel, when the nanosites began affecting Sam, she was functional for those last few hours. I didn't expect that to happen."

Jack nodded, "All right, so why did she pass out?"

Daniel, who had been relatively silent through the whole examination, turned to Jack. "The Argosians would pass out at the same time, and while you were affected, you would pass out alongside them."

Janet was nodding, "Jack, she's just sleeping."

"But when I was affected, it was a transmission that put us to sleep."

Janet looked at him, intently. "Are you sure?"

"You can look at Sam's notes."

She motioned for the notes and rifled through them until she found the frequencies.

"Now Jack, we accidentally switched the frequencies during the session. Let's send the signal to shut down and see what happens."

They returned to Sam's bedside. "Colonel . . ."

Jack nodded. "I was just leaving."

He kissed Sam's forehead. "I'll be back, Sam. This is going to work; I'll never forgive myself if it doesn't. I love you."

There was no response from the sleeping Samantha, and Jack walked out of the infirmary followed by Daniel and Teal'c, the best friends he could have at a time like this.

SG-1

"Colonel O'Neill, Dr. Fraser is waiting to speak to you in the lab."

Jack jumped up from his seat and raced to the infirmary; Teal'c, Daniel, and the young lieutenant were in tow.

"Colonel, we've slowed the growth rate of the fetus and Sam down. Now, we're back to Square 1. The fetus is at the 36-week mark, and the speed of this pregnancy is exhausting Sam's body. Unfortunately, we've exhausted all of our resources."

She swallowed, choking back tears. "Colonel, we have to assume that Sam won't wake up."

The blood drained out of Jack's already drawn face. He looked over at the lifeless body of his wife. In addition to the IV that Janet had ordered a few hours before, Sam had an oxygen mask and a feeding tube in place. The sight tore at his heart.

Just then, the klaxons went off. General Hammond left, motioning for Jack to stay. As he reached the gate room, Sgt. Walter Davis turned to the General. "It's SG-11's iris code, Sir."

"Open the iris!" He commanded.

The metal iris opened, allowing the weary off-world travelers back onto their own planet. The commanding officer triumphantly raised two vials for General Hammond to see.

SG-1

Janet looked into her microscope, cautiously eager. As she had hypothesized earlier, there were no devices lingering in any of the blood samples that she had received.

As she went to disclose this latest piece of information to Jack, Daniel, Teal'c, and General Hammond, Thor appeared.

"Supreme Commander, it is an honor to have you back with us." Janet said, recovering from the shock of his sudden appearance in her lab.

"Thank you, Dr. Fraser. I have some technology with me that I believe may help Dr. O'Neill."

"Do you? We could use anything right about now. I think we're going to lose her soon."

Thor held up a small vial that looked like a peppershaker. Its contents were black.

"This is a nano-version of the technology that we used on our enemies, the Replicators. They have since fixed the flaws that this piece of technology preys upon, but from the description of Dr. O'Neill's condition, this would eliminate the devices from her body, leaving her pregnancy to progress at a normal rate. I can take the devices out of her body when we know that they have sufficiently shut down their operation."

Janet could have kissed him. "Thanks, Thor."

Suddenly, she thought of something else. "Is there enough in there for Colonel O'Neill?"

Thor nodded, solemnly, "May we proceed?"

Janet immediately took him to Sam's bedside, where they found Jack. "Colonel, Thor thinks he might be able to eliminate these devices once and for all- for you and Sam."

Jack looked up, hope shining in his deep, dark eyes. He looked from Sam and then to Thor. "Okay, he finally breathed. "Where do you want me?"

Janet placed him on a neighboring cot. "All right, Thor, buddy, do your stuff!"

Instantly, the black mass disappeared from the vial. Janet turned to the leader of the Asguard. "How long should we wait before we know if it's doing what we want it to do?"

"Approximately an hour."

SG-1

Janet nearly ran to the group after the hour had passed. "General Hammond, Sir. There are no longer any traces of the nanosites in Colonel O'Neill's blood, and an increasingly fewer number of nanosites in Dr. O'Neill's system. She should be just fine.

Jack raised his head. "So, can I get up now?"

She nodded, enthusiastically. "Yes, Colonel."

He jumped off the bed and energetically shook Thor's hand in gratitude.

SG-1

It wasn't until six-thirty the next morning, four hours afterwards that Sam awoke. "Jack?"

As her eyelids opened slowly, she could feel the oxygen mask on her face and the feeding tube inside of her.

Jack was asleep next to her. Janet was standing nearby, checking her vital stats. "Welcome back to the world of the living, Sam. We thought we had lost you."

She began to take the equipment from Sam, and as she was about to reply, a strong kick from her unborn child forced her to gasp, unable to respond. She placed both hands affectionately on her large belly.

"So, we're both going to be all right?" She managed to whisper.

Janet nodded. "Yes, and I have an obstetrician here on the base who would like to examine you before we release you to go home for the duration of your pregnancy."

Home, Sam thought. It had only been a day or so since she'd been there, but it felt like it had been so much longer.

"It'll feel good to go back home."

Jack awoke, startled by her voice. As his eyes met hers, he realized once more how radiant she had become. "Samantha!" he breathed.

"How long have you been there?"

He chuckled, and kissed her on the forehead. "For the whole night."

"You didn't have to, you know. It was strange, I know."

"Uh-uh, you aren't getting rid of me that easily. We're in this together. From now on, and forever."


	6. Epilogue

_A couple of weeks later on June 1:_

Sam and Jack were sitting in their living room, looking over their list of baby names.

"I think it would be cute to have a little Jackie."

"Sam, I don't want to give a girl a name like Jack."

She sighed. "Listen, I just want our first child named after you: boy or girl."

He chuckled, sarcastically. "If only you'd told Dr. Johnson to tell us the child's gender . . ."

She laughed, "Oh, and you didn't tell me right before that you wanted it to be a surprise or anything."

He shrugged. "What was I supposed to do? You had been moaning about how I wanted too many guarantees."

She placed the pad of paper down. "All right. How about if it's a girl, we call her Jacqueline and if it's a boy, we name him Samuel. That way, we're both partially satisfied."

Jack shrugged. "Okay."

The grandfather clock that Sam had inherited from her dad, struck the four-thirty hour, and Jack got up.

"All right, time to go."

She looked at Jack. "Listen, Jack, I've been thinking. I don't really want to go anywhere right now. I'm kind of tired."

He held out his hand to help her up. "Sam, I told Daniel we'd be there at five, and at five, we'll be there."

She reluctantly complied, placing her hand in his. "Fine. We'll go, but then, I get a back massage. Ugh, it's killing me."

She got up, and placed her hands on her lower back. "Remind me of this next time we even think about having another kid. We're definitely adopting."

He laughed. "Uh huh."

He helped her into the car, and drove to Daniel's house, only ten minutes away. As they walked up to the door and rang the doorbell, they were met with a huge crowd.

"Surprise!"

Everybody from the base was there, and Sam felt touched. She looked around Daniel's house. She'd always seen it as a bachelor pad for the archaeologist, but suddenly, she could tell that Cassie and Janet had been there recently. There were balloons and streamers and all kinds of decorations. As she and Jack walked into the living room, she saw a banner that read: "Welcome little O'Neill."

She laughed, and Jack squeezed her hand. "I still have my bets on a baby Sam." He joked.

Daniel turned to Sam. "And I bet you have your bets on a little Jack, huh?"

She winked at him. "You better believe it."

SG-1

The party ended just before seven, and Sam's back pain had gotten increasingly worse. She stayed next to Jack, and as they sat down to visit with Janet, Daniel, Teal'c, and Cassie, she felt a strong contraction. She took a deep breath as it passed, hoping that it would be the only one: she still wasn't ready for this.

Ten minutes later, she felt another contraction. It was just as strong. She managed to stay in the conversation for another thirty minutes, and several more contractions passed by, getting stronger with each one. She squeezed Jack's hand, and he turned his attention to her. She leaned over to whisper in his ear. "Jack, I think we need to go now."

He looked at her quizzically. Just a few more minutes, he mouthed. She shook her head; they needed to go now.

He nodded, and stood up. "Thanks, Danny boy, for the great party. And, of course, to anyone else who planned it."

Sam smiled as well. "Yeah, thanks. It was really nice of you to this for us."

Janet studied Sam. "Are you all right?"

She nodded, "Just a little tired. I'll probably be fine after the baby comes."

"Your due date's on the sixth, isn't it?"

Again, she nodded.

"Sam, are you in labor?"

Jack looked at her as she nodded.

"Oh man, Sam, I'm sorry." He apologized as he grabbed the keys.

"Bye," she managed to say before he rushed her out the door to the car.

SG-1

Fifteen hours later, Sam and Jack sat in her hospital room, admiring their child.

"So, are we still going with our compromise?" Jack asked, hoping she would say no.

"Of course. You called our baby Junior, so Junior is what you get."

He chuckled. "I just hope that she won't curse me when she's older."

Sam looked from the infant, Jacqueline Melody to her husband. "I don't think she will. Because she's already got you wrapped around her little finger."

He kissed her on the forehead and then kissed his daughter. "You've got that right."

_Well, that's the end. How did you like it? You have to push the button to let me know!_


End file.
